Ja'Nay Hawkins | The 2021 MAKERS Conference

MAKERS

Head of Partner Development and DEI programming, MAKERS, welcomes the MAKERS@ community and talks about the impact of investing in and supporting Black women leaders, as well as the urgency of allyship.

Video Transcript

JA'NAY HAWKINS: Thank you, Queens, for sharing your brilliance with all of us today. And hello, good people. I recently told our Makers@ Board that my biggest dream is for all Black talent to experience unwavering support, sacrifice, and love from sponsors and allies. And, yes, I do mean love.

I believe that when you invest in someone's career, remove barriers in their path, fight for them in powerful rooms, promote them, coach them in navigating a broken system full of toxicity, support them when others won't, and make sacrifices on their behalf, that's love.

What we are experiencing is a state of urgency. In McKinsey's Race in the workplace: The Black experience report, it states, "in our current trajectory, it will take about 95 years to reach talent parity across all levels. But, if we address the major barriers that hold back the advancement of Black people, we could cut that number down to 25 years." 25 years. 25 years?

Wait, everyone, I want you to close your eyes and imagine yourself presenting a solution that is critical to your business. And you told your CEO that it will take 25 years before it actually works, and the company would then see a profit. OK, not realistic, right? Well, our board and the 20 Black Makers@ [? Leaders ?] were enraged when they heard that statistic. How do we even begin to unpack that?

We have before us the glorious opportunity to inject a new dimension of love into the veins of our civilization. Not my words. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said that. The truth is, the work that's necessary to cut that number to two to five years is possible, but only if we are all allies to one another-- and if we lead with love, empathy, and humanity.

There are currently only four Black CEOs, two of which are women. If we only knew what it really took for them to get to where they are today. But you can start. Try listening to learn and understand. There are so many Black women's stories, work, and brilliance yet to be heard.

The journey continues for us. Our Makers@ Board and the Black Makers@ [? Leaders ?] have committed to cutting that number down to less than five years. The question is, will you?

And now I have the honor of introducing a woman who understands the journey to the C-suite, the walking manifestation of possibility and grace-- trailblazing and opening the door for more Black women to have the same opportunity. Here's the CEO of TIAA, Thasunda Brown Duckett.